Work-Life Balance Amid the Pandemic

I am quite certain that the majority of the public shares my apathy for hearing the words coronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-COVID-2 or even simply “the rona”. This virus is everywhere, not only infecting the people of the world, but also our minds, media and conversations. It is important to address and understand such an aggressive and deadly pandemic, however it is important to focus on the things within the human locus of control. The coronavirus continue to spread, but we will continue to live and strive to better our own lives and the lives of others. work continues.

As the Coronavirus has put life as we know it on pause, the constricting nature of mass quarantine has altered the daily lives of humans across the globe. Aside from essential workers, the rest of the workforce is working from home and workers now must perform daily tasks within the confines of a place associated with separation from work. While a few of my classmates have been able to continue their internships in Brussels remotely, mine has unfortunately ended due to the nature of my work. What has continued remotely are my classes. The fluidity of class in person is simply not there when held online through a medium such as zoom or the big blue button. Internet connection can be an issue and the element of the absence of human proximity can add a distant and clinical sentiment to meetings. Although there are many challenges, this digital connection offers at least some form of social interaction.

I expected my productivity to experience a heavy dip during this time as I have been working from home due to the virus, but I have found the opposite to be true. I can be much more efficient in this home environment but do find that splitting the work-life balance to be exceptionally difficult. The distinction between my living space being for working or living becomes quite unclear and I believe that I am spending more time working than I was before quarantine came into effect. While I find myself doing more work remotely, I feel like I am less efficient with the time that I do put in so more hours are required. This is due to the distractions of home such as my new puppy Milly, or temptations of consuming media from the many screens that surround me.

(my 11-Week old puppy Milly)

I do feel that I am overall not communicating with as often with others in a professional capacity as compared to before the pandemic began. I find that the isolation has made me a bit less social in this aspect and I look to work on this. This anecdote does not apply to all remote workers; in 2016 the Chinese travel company Ctrip reported that remote workers made 13.5% more calls than when working in an office. I will begin a remote internship starting in June and will need to better communicate with coworkers in this setting than I have with my fellow classmates during the pandemic.